Webinar Best Practices for Multicultural Parishes: Watch a three-part webinar of Bishop Daniel Flores, chair of the USCCB Committee on Cultural Diversity in the
Church, and Assistant Directors of the Cultural Diversity Secretariat-Alejandro Aguilera-Titus, Donna Grimes, and Sr. Anna Nguyen, SCC, LMSW, as they
discuss Best Practices for Multicultural Parishes.

News Release: USCCB Launches Multicultural Parish Resource, Best Practices for ‘Shared Parishes’: Read the press release in English and Spanish about the latest resource for multicultural parishes

CARA Report - Demographic Information about the rich diversity in the U.S.

The mandate of the Committee of Cultural Diversity in the
Church, and its corresponding Secretariat, is to be present on behalf of the
Bishops’ Conference to the many cultures, ethnicities and races that today
constitute the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. The goal is to
encourage the inclusion and fuller participation of all God's People in the
life and ministry of the Church by building up their Catholic identity in a
spirit of unity in diversity.

Throughout the United States we experience a profound
demographic shift as Hispanics, Asians, Africans, Caribbean people, and many
other communities of non-European origin are on the rise. Today, as ever, the
Church's mission to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ and promote the life and
dignity of each and every human being has much to do with insight into
cultures. Catholic parishes are moving from mono-cultural patterns to ones we
call "shared," that is, to parishes in which more than one language,
racial or cultural group seek to celebrate the Eucharist and embody Christian
community. For ministers and pastoral workers to be effective in this diverse
environment, the right knowledge, attitudes and skills need to be developed.

Our Intercultural
Competencies page explains
the five competencies that were defined by the U.S. bishops in making
“Recognition of Cultural Diversity in the Church” one of their priorities. The
manual Building Intercultural Competence for Ministers has been
developed and can be found online or obtained in print from USCCB Publishing. Regional trainings on the
competencies are being scheduled at this time. Visit the Intercultural
Competency site often for updates. If interested in hosting or organizing a
training, please contact Yolanda Taylor-Burwell at ytaylor-burwell@usccb.org or
202-541-3152.

The Secretariat of Cultural Diversity is also looking for
opportunities to partner with Catholic colleges and universities, and other
institutions of higher education to disseminate the competency guidelines.
Contact the Secretariat’s executive director, Mar Muñoz-Visoso, for
information: diversity@usccb.org or 202-541-3350. A study of “Best Practices inShared
Parishes” for pastors and their teams also is forthcoming.Under the title “So That They All May Be
One,” this resource was developed in consultation with and from the experience
of nearly 20 pastors of multicultural/shared parishes from around the country
(available in the Fall 2013).

Just as with the first evangelization, the New Evangelization compels
us to go and make disciples of all nations. In the United States of America we
do not need to go too far to find people “of all nations.” That’s our blessing
and our challenge.

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